Publications
The following list of California Water Science Center publications includes both official USGS publications and journal articles authored by our scientists.
Filter Total Items: 1856
Reproductive status of western mosquitofish inhabiting selenium- contaminated waters in the Grassland Water District, Merced County, California Reproductive status of western mosquitofish inhabiting selenium- contaminated waters in the Grassland Water District, Merced County, California
This study was implemented to determine if western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) populations in the Grassland Water District suffer from impaired reproduction because of seleniferous inflows of agricultural drainwater from the Grassland Bypass Project. During June to July 2001, laboratory trials with pregnant female fish collected from two seleniferous treatment sites exposed to...
Authors
M. K. Saiki, B.A. Martin, T.W. May
Inferring time‐varying recharge from inverse analysis of long‐term water levels Inferring time‐varying recharge from inverse analysis of long‐term water levels
Water levels in aquifers typically vary in response to time‐varying rates of recharge, suggesting the possibility of inferring time‐varying recharge rates on the basis of long‐term water level records. Presumably, in the southwestern United States (Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, southern California, and southern Utah), rates of mountain front recharge to alluvial aquifers depend on...
Authors
Jesse E. Dickinson, R. T. Hanson, T.P.A. Ferre, S. A. Leake
Tidal oscillation of sediment between a river and a bay: A conceptual model Tidal oscillation of sediment between a river and a bay: A conceptual model
A conceptual model of fine sediment transport between a river and a bay is proposed, based on observations at two rivers feeding the same bay. The conceptual model consists of river, transitional, and bay regimes. Within the transitional regime, resuspension, advection, and deposition create a mass of sediment that oscillates landward and seaward. While suspended, this sediment mass...
Authors
N. K. Ganju, D. H. Schoellhamer, J.C. Warner, M.F. Barad, S.G. Schladow
A review of models and micrometeorological methods used to estimate wetland evapotranspiration A review of models and micrometeorological methods used to estimate wetland evapotranspiration
Within the past decade or so, the accuracy of evapotranspiration (ET) estimates has improved due to new and increasingly sophisticated methods. Yet despite a plethora of choices concerning methods, estimation of wetland ET remains insufficiently characterized due to the complexity of surface characteristics and the diversity of wetland types. In this review, we present models and
Authors
J.Z. Drexler, R.L. Snyder, D. Spano, U.K.T. Paw
Dissolved organic carbon and disinfection by-product precursor release from managed peat soils Dissolved organic carbon and disinfection by-product precursor release from managed peat soils
A wetland restoration demonstration project examined the effects of a permanently flooded wetland on subsidence of peat soils. The project, started in 1997, was done on Twitchell Island, in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta of California. Conversion of agricultural land to a wetland has changed many of the biogeochemical processes controlling dissolved organic carbon (DOC) release from...
Authors
J.A. Fleck, D.A. Bossio, R. Fujii
Comparison of ground-water flow model particle-tracking results and isotopic data in the Mojave River ground-water basin, southern California, USA Comparison of ground-water flow model particle-tracking results and isotopic data in the Mojave River ground-water basin, southern California, USA
Flow-path and time-of-travel results for the Mojave River ground-water basin, southern California, calculated using the ground-water flow model MODFLOW and particle-tracking model MODPATH were similar to flow path and time-of-travel interpretations derived from delta-deuterium and carbon-14 data. Model and isotopic data both show short flow paths and young ground-water ages throughout...
Authors
John A. Izbicki, Christina L. Stamos, Tracy Nishikawa, Peter Martin
Reproductive success of the Black-crowned Night Heron at Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California, 1990-2002 Reproductive success of the Black-crowned Night Heron at Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California, 1990-2002
Nesting chronology, habitat use, subcolony use, and hatchability were documented for the Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) nesting at Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, California during 1990-2002. Reproductive success was estimated using the Mayfield method and compared among years. Totals of monitored nests per year ranged from 68 in 2001 to 341 in 1996, with a trend...
Authors
Roger L. Hothem, Daphne Hatch
Genotoxicity in native fish associated with agricultural runoff events Genotoxicity in native fish associated with agricultural runoff events
The primary objective of the present study was to test whether agricultural chemical runoff was associated with in-stream genotoxicity in native fish. Using Sacramento sucker (Catostomus occidentalis), we combined field-caging experiments in an agriculturally dominated watershed with controlled laboratory exposures to field-collected water samples, and we coupled genotoxicity biomarker
Authors
Andrew Whitehead, Kathryn Kuivila, James L. Orlando, S. Kotelevtsev, Susan L. Anderson
Changes in streamflow timing in the western United States during recent decades Changes in streamflow timing in the western United States during recent decades
No abstract available.
Authors
Michael D. Dettinger
Chromium geochemistry of serpentinous sediment in the Willow core, Santa Clara County, California Chromium geochemistry of serpentinous sediment in the Willow core, Santa Clara County, California
A preliminary investigation of Cr geochemistry in serpentinous sediment completed for a multiple-aquifer ground-water monitoring well (Willow core of Santa Clara County, CA) determined sediment at depths >225 meters contains Cr concentrations ranging from 195 to 1155 mg/kg. Serpentinous sediment from this site is a potential source of non-anthropogenic Cr contamination. Chromium-bearing...
Authors
Christopher J. Oze, Matthew J. LaForce, Carl M. Wentworth, Randall T. Hanson, Dennis K. Bird, Robert G. Coleman
A micrometeorological investigation of a restored California wetland ecosystem A micrometeorological investigation of a restored California wetland ecosystem
No abstract available.
Authors
Frank Anderson, Richard L. Snyder, Robin L. Miller, Judith Z. Drexler
Channel response to tectonic forcing: field analysis of stream morphology and hydrology in the Mendocino triple junction region, northern California Channel response to tectonic forcing: field analysis of stream morphology and hydrology in the Mendocino triple junction region, northern California
An empirical calibration of the shear stress model for bedrock incision is presented, using field and hydrologic data from a series of small, coastal drainage basins near the Mendocino triple junction in northern California. Previous work comparing basins from the high uplift zone (HUZ, uplift rates around 4 mm/year) to ones in the low uplift zone (LUZ, ∼0.5 mm/year) indicates that the...
Authors
Noah P. Snyder, Kelin X. Whipple, Gregory E. Tucker, D.J. Merritts